The Knutson Update

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Jeremy has mentioned several times over the last few years that he would love to go on a cruise. I know most of you would be jumping up and down, and yelling 'When can we leave?!" I don't know what's wrong with me, but the thought of going on a cruise scares the begeebees (yes, that's a word - 'bu-jee-bees') out of me! When I was a little girl, I loved the ocean. Now that I am older, have watched Jaws movies too many times (Poseidon was also a scary movie), the ocean scares me a bit. The water that once was playful and fun, now holds sting rays and killer jelly fish. Recent news stories of overturned cruise ships, and tidal waves doesn't help.

Back in the fall, I bought Jeremy an all day fishing trip for two for his birthday. It was a great deal, and you got to spend all day on the bay, in the Atlantic ocean, fishing to your heart's content. I was thinking it would be perfect for him and a friend. Almost as soon as I gave him the gift, he informed me that his 'friend' would be me. What? You don't want to take one of your guy friends? For the next few weeks, I prepared myself for my adventure on the sea.

When we arrived at the dock on that chilly morning, there were other fishing duos who had chartered the boat as well. Mostly older men, who looked like they'd spent their lives fishing. And he I roll up, in a jean skirt to my knees, a pair of boots, super cute black patterned tights, and my favorite black and sparkly scarf. Okay, so maybe I was a little overdressed. :)

When I realized we couldn't see land anymore, I got a little nervous!

Once the boat started moving, I was taken in by all the beautiful scenery. It was gorgeous, and even though the mist was totally ruining my hairdo, I was optimistic that this was going to be fun. I was a little nauseous, but nothing too bad. I could tell by the look on Jeremy's face that he was in heaven. He loves fishing, and the trip out to our fishing spot was fun. We rarely get time away from the hustle and bustle of life to enjoy each other's company. It was such a blessing!

That is one good looking fisherman!

It didn't take long once we reached 'the spot' to get our poles in the water. The older gentlemen across the boat from us caught the first fish. It happened almost immediately after we put our poles in the water! I was admiring his fish, Jeremy and I were laughing, and next thing I know, I feel a tug! I had a fish on my line!! The guy next to me didn't believe it. Yes, I may not look the part, but I was a bonafide fisher-woman!

I had never caught a fish this big before. I pulled it up to the side of the boat, Jeremy got it off the hook (I didn't really want to touch it much), and the captain's wife measured it for me. It was like 24 inches long. Definitely a keeper!
I hadn't got my line back in the water but for just a minute, and I caught another one! This one was even longer, and I wish I had taken a picture of the guy's face next to me. All the sudden, he was my best friend, asking me what I was doing to catch those fish. His explanation? They must like my perfume. All I knew was that I was winning: everybody else - 1, me - 2. :)

Next fish came pretty quick after my second one, and it was on Jeremy's line! The Knutsons were fishing champions!

Right after Jeremy caught his fish, we noticed a strange looking cloud heading our way. We had never seen anything like it.
As soon as it passed over top of us, everything changed.

Our fun fishing trip turned crazy! The waves were rocking the boat hard, the wind was blowing, and the captain said due to the weather it was time to head back to shore. We hadn't even made it to lunch time yet! I sought shelter from the cold wet spray inside the cabin, but figured out very quickly that being inside made my sea sickness much worse. Sweet Jeremy stuck by my side and sat out on the side of the boat with me. At this point, I needed to be close to the railing, because at any moment I might need to toss my cookies overboard... if you know what I mean. Getting back to shore was slow going, as now we were fighting against the strong waves. It took over twice as long as getting out there, and the entire time I was sick. Until the bad weather came, I really was having fun, and thoroughly enjoying spending the day with Jeremy. Even as bad as I felt, he made the whole experience memorable... in a good way. When I think back on that day, I smile, and thank God for the amazing man He has given me to spend the rest of my life with. Truly my best friend. :)

Once we returned home with our catch, Jeremy cut it up and fried it for dinner that night. Nothing better than freshly caught fish! Yum!

I'm thinking that a cruise is probably not in my foreseeable future. I might venture out on a fishing trip again, but only after making sure that the weather is going to be perfect, and taking several Dramamine! :)

Friday, February 24, 2012

Yesterday was beautiful! With a high in the mid-70's we knew we couldn't stay cooped up all day. :) After we took Kylie to the dermatologist (I'll tell you more about that later), the kids and I along with our friend Lindsay headed to the zoo! I took tons of pictures and you can check them out on Facebook, or you can watch the slideshow below. The kids had a blast feeding the giraffes, and got a lesson in mating rituals from some very friendly birds in the aviary! :)

I took these pictures while we were visiting Tennessee this last time. We went on a walk around my parents' neighborhood, and took along our nephew, Lanning. Now that Luke is older and actually fun to play with now, it was a real blessing to see Luke and Lanning's relationship start to bloom. Towards the end of the walk, Lanning started getting tired and was lagging behind. Luke noticed and went back to walk with Lanning so he wasn't alone. It was so sweet!

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

UPDATE: I can't believe I wrote this post and didn't include the funniest part of the snow experience! Well, maybe it wasn't that funny at the time, but now I can laugh about it. :) With all the kids out in the snow shortly after 7:00 AM, I decided to go snap some pictures while the snow was still there. I donned my coat, hat, boots, and scarf over top of my jammies. I was only going to be out there for a few minutes.... or so I thought. I grabbed the camera and went out the door. When I got out there, I realized John David wasn't quite as bundled up as I wanted him to be and sent him inside to get his heavier coat. He came back around the house confused. "The door is locked." "What?!"

After our nice neighbor offered to let Caitlyn use the phone and call Jeremy, we waited for him to come let us back in the house. Or at least I waited... in my jammies... in the snow.... with my camera hidden under my coat to keep it dry. The kids were too busy playing to care! :)

The weather here has been super crazy lately. We've had a very mild winter, which I have thoroughly enjoyed, but the kids have been a bit disappointed that we haven't seen snow. After last winter's unusual abundance of snow, the kids were expecting some this year. Well, they got their wish, albeit for just a little while anyway. :) On Sunday evening, the temperature dropped pretty quickly, and it started snowing. It snowed heavily for several hours, and in the morning, we had a yard full of snow! It wasn't the pretty fluffy kind (more crunchy than fluffy), but the kids didn't care and were up at 7:00 waiting to play in it. Normally, I probably would have made them wait at least until we had eaten breakfast, but with a warm day ahead, Jeremy and I knew the snow wouldn't last but just a few hours.

It was about six inches, and just enough for the kiddos to sled down the slope in our front yard. Luke made me laugh. He just laid on his sled while our sweet Kylie pulled him around. :) He had a pile of snowballs on his sled with him, and kept telling me that they were hungry and needed water. By lunch most of the snow had turned into mus d puddles, and the sun was warm and high in the shy. This morning there are a few small spots of snow left, but the majority of it is gone. The crazy weather continues, though. We decided to plan a day to the zoo later this week. The weather forecast? 68 degrees and sunny on Thursday!

Luke was pretty tired after all the playing in the snow. He took a great nap!

Sunday, February 19, 2012

A couple weeks ago, we had the privilege of meeting two of our favorite couples, Mark & Candy and Pam & Billy, for dinner. All four of our kids and Candy and Mark's daughter Abby came along for the fun. We met at an Asian restaurant, and I settled in for some yummy Cashew Chicken and rice. Next thing I know, there is talk of sushi. Wait, sushi? Almost all the adults ordered sushi. I did not.

When the sushi came, Pam and Jeremy were trying to talk me into tasting some sushi. Now granted it wasn't the raw kind, and basically was rice, veggies, and seaweed, but seriously... me eat sushi? Eventually I gave in, and tried some. It didn't go so well. I couldn't even swallow it! It was disgusting and I will probably never try it again. :) The highlight of my night was when little Abby showed us how she could hold a pen with her nose. :D

Just wanted to let you all know about a new job I got. For awhile now, I have been doing frequent freelance writing jobs, plus my normal writing at MyFourMonkeys.com. The little bit of extra money is always nice, and I get to write - something I love to do. I'm really excited about a year-long contract I just started with Chiquita... as in Chiquita bananas. This week they launched an online community for moms called Chiquita Moms (www.ChiquitaMoms.com). If you're a mom, come by sometime and check it out. I'd love for you to read some of my writing!

Welcome To The Knutson Update!

We are an active family of six (Jeremy, Angie, Caitlyn, Kylie, John David, and Luke) learning to live God's way, and growing together in His love. It's an up-to-the-minute account of the craziness here that keeps us connected with our friends and family! Enjoy!